Australian boxer's life celebrated at state funeral

Two thousand mourners said farewell to Australia's former world boxing champion Lionel Rose Monday at his state funeral at Melbourne's Festival Hall, the venue for many of his fights. Rose, the first Aboriginal boxer to win a world title, died on May 8 aged 62 after a long period of ill-health. Among the mourners at his funeral were Rose's long-time trainer Jack Rennie, who attended in a wheelchair, former world champion Johnny Famechon and Aboriginal fighter Tony Mundine. Rose, who suffered a stroke in 2007 that left him partially paralysed and with speech difficulties, won abiding national respect for his achievements. His life was celebrated and he was hailed by friends as an inspiration to his Aboriginal people and a man of both pride and humility. "He knew from an early age the challenges facing his family and the Aboriginal community," Aboriginal elder Joy Murphy Wandin told the funeral gathering. "Lionel's career has been an inspiration for many. "Lionel also sent a strong message especially to young people around the world to stand up and fight for your rights and aspire to reach your dream." The service was interspersed with old newsreel clips of his great fights and Rose's subsequent career as a country music singer. Rose, who outpointed Fighting Harada for the world bantamweight title in Tokyo in 1968 at the age of 19, became a national sports hero and an icon for Australia's indigenous community. He was named Australian of the Year later that year, the first Aborigine to be awarded the honour and was also appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). Rose went on to make three successful world bantamweight title defences against Japan's Takao Sakurai, Mexican Chucho Castillo and Englishman Alan Rudkin before he lost the title to Mexican Ruben Olivares in a fifth-round knockout in August 1969.